Displays descriptions of system messages.
Format
HELP/MESSAGE [/qualifier [...]] [search-string]
1 – Parameter
search-string
Specifies a message identifier or one or more words from a
message's text. By default, HELP/MESSAGE displays a description
of the message produced by the last executed command (that is,
the message corresponding to the value currently stored in the
CLI symbol $STATUS).
The Help Message utility (MSGHLP) operates using the following
conventions:
o Words containing fewer than three alphanumeric characters are
ignored.
o Words can be specified in any order.
You can minimize search time by specifying the most unusual
word first.
o Nonalphanumeric characters are ignored in the search.
Exceptions are the percent sign (%) and hyphen (-) when
they prefix a message. Therefore, you can paste a full
message into the search string, provided you include these
special characters and delete any variables (such as file
names) that were inserted into the message.
If Help Message fails to find a pasted message in the database,
submit the command again and omit the leading special character,
facility, and severity. Some common messages are documented as
"shared" messages rather than facility-specific messages.
o Help Message matches all words that begin with the characters
specified in the search string. Use /WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD to
specify that only whole words be matched.
2 – Qualifiers
2.1 /BRIEF
Outputs the message text only.
2.2 /DELETE
/DELETE=filename.MSGHLP
Deletes all messages contained in the specified .MSGHLP file from
whichever of the following files is found first:
o A .MSGHLP$DATA file specified with the /LIBRARY qualifier
o The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in a search path specified by the
/LIBRARY qualifier
o SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA (the default .MSGHLP$DATA file)
o The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in the default search path
(defined by logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY)
You must have write access to OpenVMS supplied .MSGHLP$DATA files
to delete messages from the OpenVMS supplied database.
NOTE
If you create a .MSGHLP file by specifying a search string,
check the output .MSGHLP file to be sure the search did
not pick up any unexpected messages that you do not want to
delete from the database. Edit any such messages out of the
.MSGHLP file before you perform the delete operation.
2.3 /EXTRACT
/EXTRACT=filename.MSGHLP
Extracts messages from the database and generates a .MSGHLP file
that can be edited, if desired, and used as input for /INSERT and
/DELETE operations. /EXTRACT retrieves data from a .MSGHLP$DATA
file or logical search path specified by /LIBRARY or, by default,
from files in the search path defined by logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY.
When /EXTRACT is not specified, Help Message produces output in
standard text format by default (see /OUTPUT).
2.4 /FACILITY
/FACILITY=?
/FACILITY=(facility-name [,...])
/FACILITY=ALL
Specifies which facilities in the database are to be searched
for a match.
Enter /FACILITY=? to output a list of all facilities in the
default database or in a database specified by /LIBRARY.
To narrow your search, specify one or more facility names
with /FACILITY. (Multiple facilities must be enclosed in
parentheses and be separated by commas.) Help Message then
outputs only matching messages produced by the specified
facility or facilities.
Specify /FACILITY=ALL to output messages for all facilities
in the database. /FACILITY=ALL is the default unless another
facility is implied; for example, specifying /STATUS or
defaulting to the value of the CLI symbol $STATUS automatically
identifies a specific facility. Similarly, cutting and pasting
a message that includes a facility name invalidates use of the
/FACILITY qualifier.
2.5 /FULL
/FULL (default)
Outputs the complete message description, including message
text, facility name, explanation, user action, and user-supplied
comment, if any.
2.6 /INSERT
/INSERT=filename.MSGHLP
Updates the first of the following files to be found with new or changed
information from the specified .MSGHLP file:
o A .MSGHLP$DATA file specified with the /LIBRARY qualifier
o The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in a search path specified by the
/LIBRARY qualifier
o The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in the default search path
(defined by logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY)
o SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA (the default MSGHLP$DATA file)
You must have write access for the OpenVMS supplied .MSGHLP$DATA
files to insert data into these files. User-supplied data is
identified by change bars in Help Message output.
2.7 /LIBRARY
/LIBRARY=disk:[directory]filename.MSGHLP$DATA
/LIBRARY=disk:[directory]
/LIBRARY=logical-name
Defines the messages database for the current command to be
a particular .MSGHLP$DATA file, all the .MSGHLP$DATA files in
a specified directory, or all the files in a search path defined
by a logical name.
For most operations, the default database is either
SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA or a search path
of .MSGHLP$DATA files defined by logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY.
For /DELETE and /INSERT operations, the default database is
either SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA or the first
file in a search path defined by logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY.
2.8 /OUTPUT
/OUTPUT=filespec
Writes output to the specified file. By default, Help Message
writes output to SYS$OUTPUT, which is normally the terminal.
2.9 /PAGE
/PAGE (default for screen display)
/NOPAGE
Displays terminal output one screen at a time. The page length
is automatically set to 1 line less than the value specified
by SET TERMINAL/PAGE. (Use of /PAGE is incompatible with
/OUTPUT=filespec.)
2.10 /SECTION_FILE
/SECTION_FILE=*
/SECTION_FILE=file-spec
Identifies the specified message section file to the system so
that Help Message can interpret the $STATUS values for the
messages in that file. The default file specification is
SYS$MESSAGE:.EXE. Specifying /SECTION_FILE=* automatically
includes all OpenVMS-supplied message section files.
NOTE
The results of using this qualifier are entirely independent
from those created by the SET MESSAGE command. The Help
Message utility and Message utility do not interact. You must
separately code each utility to obtain the results you want.
2.11 /SORT
/SORT
/NOSORT (default)
Sorts output in alphabetical order. If a sort fails, retry the
operation using the /WORK_FILES qualifier.
2.12 /STATUS
/STATUS=status-code
/STATUS='symbol'
/STATUS='$STATUS' (default)
Outputs the message corresponding to the specified status code.
You can specify the status code with a decimal or hexadecimal
number or a symbol enclosed in apostrophes.
If a HELP/MESSAGE command does not include a search string, Help
Message by default outputs the message corresponding to the CLI
symbol $STATUS; that is, Help Message displays information on how
the last executed command completed.
You cannot specify a search string or /FACILITY with /STATUS.
/FACILITY is also illegal if you omit the search string and
default to /STATUS='$STATUS'.
2.13 /WORD_MATCH
/WORD_MATCH=INITIAL_SUBSTRING (default)
/WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD
/WORD_MATCH=INITIAL_SUBSTRING matches all words that begin with
a word specified in the search string. The search string can
contain multiple words to be matched. Only messages that match
every word in the search string (in any order) are output.
/WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD matches whole words only and refines your
search to the exact words specified. For example, an exact search
on ACC screens out dozens of other messages containing words that
begin with the letters ACC.
2.14 /WORK_FILES
/WORK_FILES=nn
/WORK_FILES=0 (default if qualifier is omitted)
/WORK_FILES=2 (default if qualifier is entered with no value)
Specifies that work files are to be used if the /SORT qualifier
is specified. You can specify a value from 0 to 10 for nn. This
qualifier has no effect if /SORT is not specified.
3 – Examples
1. $ SHOW DEVICE KUDOS
%SYSTEM-W-NOSUCHDEV, no such device available
$ HELP/MESSAGE
The first command creates an error. The default HELP/MESSAGE
command (with no qualifiers) displays a description of the
SYSTEM facility message NOSUCHDEV.
2. $ HELP/MESSAGE ACCVIO
$ HELP/MESSAGE/BRIEF ACCVIO
$ HELP/MESSAGE/FACILITY=SYSTEM ACCVIO
$ HELP/MESSAGE VIRTUAL ACCESS
$ HELP/MESSAGE/STATUS=12
$ HELP/MESSAGE/STATUS=%XC
These commands demonstrate how you can use various qualifiers
to access and display the ACCVIO message (sometimes several!)
in different formats.
3. $ HELP/MESSAGE/BRIEF ACC
$ HELP/MESSAGE/BRIEF/WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD ACC
In the first command, Help Message by default matches dozens of
words beginning with the string "ACC." The /WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD
qualifier dramatically refines the search to match the exact word
only.
4. $ HELP/MESSAGE/FACILITY=(BACKUP,SHARED)/SORT/OUTPUT=MESSAGES.TXT
This command selects all messages issued by the BACKUP
facility and those messages documented as "Shared by several
facilities," alphabetizes them, and outputs them to a printable
file called MESSAGES.TXT.
By selecting the messages you want and directing them to a
file, you can create and print your own customized messages
documentation.
5. $ HELP/MESSAGE/EXTRACT=BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP BADMESSAGE
$ HELP/MESSAGE/DELETE=BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP-
_$ /LIBRARY=SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA
$ CONVERT SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA-
_SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA
$ PURGE SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA
$ HELP/MESSAGE/INSERT=BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP
The first command in this sequence extracts the hypothetical
message BADMESSAGE from the default database and outputs it to
file BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP.
The second command uses the BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP file to delete
the BADMESSAGE description from the MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA file
specified by the /LIBRARY qualifier.
The next two commands compress the MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA file
to save disk space after the deletion.
The last command uses the BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP file (possibly
an edited version at a later time) to insert the BADMESSAGE
message into the default .MSGHLP$DATA file.
6. $ HELP/MESSAGE/EXTRACT=NOSNO.MSGHLP NOSNO
$ EDIT/EDT NOSNO.MSGHLP
1NOSNO, can't ski; no snow
2XCSKI, XCSKI Program
3Your attempt to ski failed because there is no snow.
4Wait until there is snow and attempt the operation again.
5If you don't want to wait, go to a location where there is
5snow and ski there.
5
5Or, try ice skating instead!
[EXIT]
$ HELP/MESSAGE/INSERT=NOSNO.MSGHLP
This command sequence shows how users with write access to
OpenVMS supplied .MSGHLP$DATA files can add a comment to a
OpenVMS supplied message.
The first command extracts hypothetical message NOSNO to file
NOSNO.MSGHLP. The second command edits the .MSGHLP file to add
a comment at the end of the message. Each comment line, even
blank lines, includes a "5" prefix. The next command updates
the database by using NOSNO.MSGHLP to insert the updated
message into the default .MSGHLP$DATA file.